Zaria flood victims mourn deceased loved ones

For many years, Zaria has not witnessed any rainfall that would result in deaths. That is why the rainstorm of Sunday, July 10, 2016, in the ancient city would be remembered for a long time.

The sad countenance of Jamilu Usman was infectious. Obviously confused and distressed, Usman was seen moving up and down the Bakatoshi Street of Magume, Zaria. His mien stemmed from the fact that the torrential rainfall that Zaria witnessed on Sunday night, July 10, killed his wife of 28 years and three children.

When our correspondent sought his explanation of the incident, Usman said; “I had been battling illness for some days. So, on that faithful day, I went out to buy medicine before the rains started. As I was moving out of the house, my children told me to buy biscuit for them and this is the biscuit. I must take this biscuit to them wherever they are, because it is a promise that I have made and I must fulfil it.”

Usman continued; “at the medicine store, it started raining and there was no way I could come out. I did not want the rain to touch me, thereby worsening my illness. When the rain got very heavy, I called my wife to confirm their condition. She told me that they were in the hands of Allah. That statement made me uncomfortable. Immediately the rain stopped, I headed home.”

When he arrived home, Usman was shocked by what he met. “The problem was not with the house, but my wife and three children were nowhere to be found. We started searching. My wife, Fatima, was found backing her one-year-old baby, Hadiza. This is what I found shocking and I am really in distress. Seeing my wife with my daughter on her back and both of them were dead was the worst moment of my life.”

Apart from Usman, many residents of the Bakatoshi Street lost one belonging or the other to the rains. The ward head of the area, Malam Abdullahi Muhammad, attributed the flood to what he called human factors.

“In my own view, indiscriminate disposal of refuse is one of the factors that led to this destruction. Secondly, the houses here are too close to the Kubanni River. If truth must be told, the river used to be very wide, but human activities have reduced the size. Many houses were also constructed along the river bank.

“The only thing we can do now is to change our habit and attitude towards waterways. We also pray to Allah to forgive those who lost their lives and compensate those who lost properties,” Malam Muhammad said.

Investigation by Daily Trust on Sunday revealed that many students of Nuhu Bamalli Polytechnic, Ahmadu Bello University and Federal College of Education, Zaria, who reside in the area lost vital documents, including credentials.

The Director, Planning, Relieve and Natural Disaster, Kaduna State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Mr. Samson Gaura, said construction of houses on waterways was responsible for the incident.

Gaura, who represented the Executive Director, SEMA, Mr. Ezekiel Baba Kari, said they had so far identified 15 houses that were destroyed by the rains in Bakatoshi Street alone.

During a visit, Kaduna State Deputy Governor, Barnabas Bantex, promised that the state government would assist the victims. He said that the state Ministry of Works would be mobilised to the area to take measures that would prevent reoccurrence.